Corporation of London — Notice of Civic Authority, 145 Fleet Street — 1907

Institutions endure through the authority they exercise. Bearing the Corporation of London’s name and City arms, this 1907 notice preserves that authority in action: an order to remedy defects at 145 Fleet Street, with a fixed deadline and the prospect of court enforcement.

The Corporation governs the Square Mile, London’s historic financial centre, through a civic structure distinct from the government of Greater London. This surviving document gives that institution a physical presence—printed authority, handwritten particulars and a recorded response. An object from the everyday machinery of power.

Details

Corporation of London public health notice dated 26 February 1907, addressed to the owner or occupier of 145 Fleet Street, the address of Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese. Printed form with manuscript entries and the City arms, issued under the Public Health (London) Act, 1891. Records defective drains, soil pipes, water closets and waste pipes; requires remedial work within twenty-eight days and warns of court proceedings for noncompliance. Bears the names James Bell, Town Clerk, and A. Wheaton, Sanitary Inspector. A handwritten note on the reverse states that the matter has been placed in the hands of surveyors.

Condition

Folds, light toning, left-edge filing holes and a small tear at the lower edge. Handwritten and printed text remain substantially legible.